Public safety, environment, healthcare and transparency: WA AG candidates talk priorities

Unlike multiple other crowded races for elected office in Washington state this year, the race for the Attorney General’s Office attracted only three candidates.

Those three candidates — all Washington attorneys with a host of varying litigation experience — will soon be narrowed down to two in the August primary. Those two will advance to the November general election.

The winner will replace Bob Ferguson, who has been the state’s Attorney General since 2012. Ferguson is giving up the seat to run for governor.

Here’s what the three Attorney General candidates had to say in interviews with McClatchy.

Manka Dhingra

Manka Dhingra is the current Democratic Deputy Majority Leader of the Washington State Senate and has been in the Legislature since 2017 after being voted in during a special election that year. She is also a former Senior Deputy Prosecuting Attorney with King County, she assisted in the creation of 40-hour crisis intervention training, and served on the Shoreline Police Department’s Advisory Group for Response Awareness De-escalation and Referral.

Dhingra told McClatchy that her background in healthcare aligns perfectly with the needs of the AG’s Office, and that it is important because of what’s happening with hospital mergers as well as for developing an exit strategy for the state’s Trueblood lawsuit, which challenged delays in competency evaluations for people in jail.

“And with a shortage of prosecutors and defense across the state, a lot of civil commitment work is going to have to fall on the shoulders of the Attorney General’s Office. They’re going to have to step in and really make sure they’re being a partner,” Dhingra said.

Dhingra also believes that her work in the Legislature negotiating with other Democrats and with Republicans will translate well to the work she would be doing at the AG’s Office.

If elected, Dhingra said she would prioritize consumer protection laws, access to healthcare, and environmental protections.

“We’ve got to make sure we are holding polluters accountable,” Dhingra said. “...I really do think we need to make sure we’re leaving the planet in a condition where the next generation and the generation after that can actually breathe the air and drink the water. I think it is critical to change that culture where companies are saying it’s OK to pollute the planet.”

Dhingra said she also believes transparency is key in the AG’s Office.

“I think that’s how you build trust in government,” Dhingra said. “...I actually think it is a very positive thing to help build trust and relationships with the community. So to me, that’s critical.”

Dhingra has been endorsed by nearly every other current Democratic state Senator including Senate Majority Leader Andy Billig from Spokane, retiring Olympia Sen. Sam Hunt, and Tacoma Sen. Yasmin Trudeau.

Dhingra has collected more than $873,000 in donations, and has spent nearly $492,000 of that, according to the Public Disclosure Commission.

Nick Brown

Nick Brown is a former Army Judge Advocate General (JAG) Officer and Washington prosecuting attorney who was appointed to be general counsel for Gov. Jay Inslee. He was then appointed U.S. Attorney for Western Washington by President Joe Biden in 2021, a post he left in June 2023, shortly before he announced his run for state Attorney General.

Brown told McClatchy that, if elected, he looks forward to managing the state’s largest law firm to make it run more efficiently. He said he would like to see the office function “at a higher level to make sure that the legal services and advice are doing better on behalf of Washingtonians.”

He believes the AG’s Office needs to be on the front line for issues that are nationally important, such as access to abortion and environmental issues.

“I’d like to see the AG’s Office be more heavily involved in some of the public safety issues,” Brown said. “And that means helping the legislature craft good policies, trying to figure out all the ways that we can do the things that build sustainable safety, addressing the housing crisis — there’s just a litany of things I’d love to see the office continue to improve on.”

Brown said the concerns he’s heard from Washingtonians are consistent across the state: housing and homelessness, the impacts of fentanyl on communities, and general concerns about democracy.

Public safety issues are one of his major priorities, he said, but said law enforcement, prisons, and prosecution are just some of the tools, not the only tools, needed for public safety.

“The things that make safety sustainable in my mind are things like housing and jobs, and an education system and a mental health and drug support system for people who are dealing with addiction or other issues,” Brown said. “And those are the things that make it sustainable. And those are also things that play a really important role and can play a larger role”.

While Brown said he believes Washington state is transparent in many ways, there is room for improvement, such as making the records process more efficient.

“I think the government, whether it’s the state government or local government, should always be trying to get better,” Brown said.

Inslee has endorsed Brown, as have Tacoma Mayor Victoria Woodards, Seattle Mayor Bruce Harrell, and former Washington State Gov. Gary Locke.

Brown has raised the most in donations in the AG’s race, with donations totaling more than $1.1 million. The campaign has spent over $464,000 of that so far.

Pete Serrano

Pete Serrano, the only Republican in the race, is the current mayor of Pasco and a former Pasco City Council member. Previously an environmental attorney who worked for the U.S. Department of Energy at the Hanford site, Serrano also co-founded the Silent Majority Foundation, a conservative non-profit currently engaged in a battle with the state over the high-capacity magazine ban in the Washington State V. Gators Custom Guns lawsuit.

As AG, Serrano told McClatchy one of his main focuses would be on environmental issues. He believes his background in environmental law makes him distinct from the other candidates in that respect.

“I do think the Attorney General’s role could really advise on what is going to protect our environment and preserve it and allow us to utilize the natural resources in a good way,” Serrano said.

Additionally, Serrano said he would be different from his opponents because he wants to see more criminal prosecution in the state.

“…I am here to make sure the streets are cleaned up, I’m here to make sure the laws are enforced, and I will advise the legislature when they overstep their bounds,” he said. “Similarly, when agency overreach is afoot, I will peel that back.”

Serrano acknowledged that he would be “unquestionably different” from the other candidates on the issue of gun control. He said he is not out to protect guns, but wants his team to analyze constitutional questions.

He is also against abortion, unlike his Democratic opponents, but told McClatchy that he would not violate abortion laws that have been in place in the state for decades. He also noted that he would not “attack other states” regarding their abortion laws.

In regards to transparency, Serrano said he would like to increase the number of public records officials in the Attorney General’s Office, and would make sure they knew to expedite the release of records.

“I think the more public and open and transparent we are, the more trust that people have,” he said. “That’s what people want in their government. They want a body that they believe is looking for their best interests instead of just spending their money to make political plays.”

Serrano has the endorsements of the Washington State GOP, many current and former Republican state lawmakers, and former Spokane Mayor Nadine Woodward.

Serrano has raised over $162,000 so far for his campaign, and has spent over $115,000.